Public Financing in American Elections

Edited by Costas Panagopoulos

Publication Year: 2011

Reformers argue that public financing of campaigns will help rescue American democracy from the corruptive influence of money in elections. Public Financing in American Elections evaluates this claim and aims to remove much of the guesswork from the discussion about public finance.

Featuring some of the most senior scholars in political science and electoral studies, this book provides an up-to-date treatment of campaign finance research and thinking about public campaign financing reforms. Exploring proposals at the local, state, and federal levels, the contributors provide a comprehensive overview of public financing initiatives in the United States and discuss their impact. Focused analyses of several current public programs are also presented.

Introduction

In any democratic polity, vigilance is necessary to ensure that the electoral
process is unsullied and legitimate. In the United States, concern about
the role and influence of money in the electoral arena has made campaign
finance a focal point for assessing the vigor and vitality of the democratic
process. The focus of many reforms...

I

1

In his 1907 message to Congress, President Theodore Roosevelt proposed
what he called “a very radical measure,” one that he conceded would
“take some time” to consider: the public financing of federal campaigns
(Roosevelt 1907, 78).1 The president argued that “the need for collecting
large [private] campaign funds...

2

The public funding system for presidential elections collapsed in
2008. The policy question for the future will be whether to revive
it at all and, if so, how. It is clear that whatever purposes the system
once served, the political context has so changed as to make the system
at best insufficient. Some will seek...

3

When it comes to public financing of campaigns, the states and
local governmental agencies are clearly the laboratories of reform.
Public financing of elections exists in one form or another
in twenty-four states and sixteen local....

4

Public financing for U.S. presidential elections is in crisis. Both the
Republican and Democratic nominees rejected primary financing in
2004 and 2008. And Democrat Barack Obama became the first major
party candidate since the system began in 1976 to spurn public financing for
the general election campaign. Reform groups...

II

5

For two decades, municipal elections in New York City have been contested
on what might be termed a “level” playing field. The New York
City Campaign Finance Act, which became law in 1988, provided for
partial public financing of campaigns...

6

Limited electoral competition is a key feature of contemporary elections
in the United States for all levels of office (McDonald and
Samples 2006; Panagopoulos and Green 2008b). High—and mounting—
incumbent reelection rates alarm critics...

7

In recent years, since the advent of full public funding of elections in
Maine and Arizona in 2000, public financing of elections has received
increased scholarly and media attention. Since the implementation of
these new public funding systems, there has been no shortage of studies
examining their effects on electoral competition...

8

While money alone does not guarantee victory, its absence all but
ensures defeat for federal and state candidates alike (e.g., Caldeira
and Patterson 1982; Giles and Pritchard 1985; Tucker and
Weber 1987; Green and Krasno 1990; Gierzynski....

9

Proponents of public financing for election campaigns frequently claim
that such reforms increase voter participation. This argument not
only is offered as a prediction about the effects of reforms but also
has been cited as a factual consequence of prior...

10

The strength of democracy can often be gauged by citizens’ attitudes
and relationship toward their government, elected officials, and the
political process. Positive evaluations of government are generally
viewed as a desirable feature of democratic governance. In the United States,
however, scholars have detected sharp declines...

Conclusion

The integrity of the electoral process is of paramount importance in
democratic polities. In the United States, reformers remain vigilant
to ensure that imperfections in the political arena are speedily
rectified to avoid compromising democracy....

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